The Odd Couple
by lener
Summary: Bittersweet, romantic, raging and at times utterly hilarious. A chronicle of the moments shared by our favourite couple Raven and Beast Boy. Served one shot at a time. UPDATED 27-JAN-2011.
1. First Date

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**ONE**

**First Date**

* * *

The moment the doors slid open to reveal the familiar figure lounging on the couch, something inside her seemed to rear up and, in that effort, push her out and back into the corridor. But she quelled it, stepped instead into the threshold of the room.

She owed it to him, after that night on the rooftop.

What the two of them were now she didn't know, just like how she didn't want to know what this lonely activity – with only the two of them – was called. But she was here, and because she wanted to be here.

His back was to her; without taking his eyes off the screen he said, "Come sit with me."

She could have said a million things in reply: 'I don't take orders', 'I don't feel like sitting', 'Why' even, but she sat.

For a long while his thumbs manipulated the controls. His face was turned towards the screen. Her face was blatantly studying his. She took in his profile silently: the messy forest green hair, the large expressive eyes, the way the young biceps shifted beneath his uniform as his arms moved, how his lips were pursed in childish but total concentration.

He stopped playing and turned to stare at her, which caught her off guard.

"It's a video game," he explained, almost gently, like talking to a child, "it's what I do when I'm bored or sad. The game may be silly, but it's how the silliness helps you that matters." Then suddenly he looked away, abashed. "I just thought we'd find out more about each other, you know."

She knew.

He turned back to the screen to resume his game. This time she settled back onto the couch and watched the characters on the screen. There was a comfortable silence between them, whichRaven chose to break a couple of minutes later.

"So I was thinking… the next time we do this you could come to my room and look at my books."

Beast Boyturned to her and smiled, and that said everything.

* * *

**A/N: **I know, it's a weird take on a first date but I just thought somehow it could be suitable for them, since they're so different.

**Next Update: August 3**


	2. Daddy's Girl

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**TWO**

**Daddy's Girl**

* * *

Green hands reach out towards a doorknob and the door bursts open to reveal a doorway dark as death and then there is a roar so almighty it manages to tear the trees from the sidewalk while leaving the two figures still standing on the fuzzy doormat which reads 'Home Sweet Home'.

Framed in the doorway is a monster of all monsters. A heavily muscled demon god of some sort, with equally evil red skin to match. Pure white strands of hair sprout from a large scalp and fall to frame an angular face and an open mouth that is the source of the roaring. The boy stares at terrible sharp teeth and shudders.

The last things he see are the majestic antlers breaking forth from the skull and into the air above the head, the glaring set of four glowing crimson eyes and humongous legs that could crush him as easily as though he were an insect – before he gives a shriek and slams the door shut on this nightmarish vision.

The boy turns to the figure at his side and grabs her hand for support. She lets him do so. Her skin is pale, and her hand is cool.

"Okay," she says, "maybe meeting my parents _wasn't_ such a good idea…"

* * *

**A/N: **A funny one… well, at least I hope it did come across as funny. Thanks to those who reviewed:

**Silverxpearls**

**Tortured Soul **(Happy belated Birthday!)

**samuraigurl1213**

**acosta perez jose ramiro**

**Agent of the Divine One**

**AureliusXsoul**

**Next Update: August 10**


	3. Synthesis

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**THREE**

**Synthesis**

* * *

She is a black and violet

synergy of rage and calm

He is an olive-emerald ball

of laughter – changeling.

but

They fit together, leftovers

gelling in the only combination

left for them.

Fang-toothed and devil-eyed

they intertwine, both beast

and demon

until

Twilight breaks through the

curtains and stabs the bell into alarm.

Titans, go.

* * *

**A/N: **Okay, it's a poem. I apologise if this might seem like a cop-out, but I will defend this post by saying that I like writing poetry and I feel that poetry is a great way to express words that may not necessarily sound nice in prose. So!

Addressing comments relating to longer posts: I regret to say that the length of the post depends entirely on the content of the post. For example, I couldn't have made this post any longer because the poem was this long, and to lengthen the poem just to make the post longer would not have been true to the content. As is for the previous chapter. But fear not! Next chapters will be longer because they contain prose and have more stuff to say.

Thanks to all who reviewed:

**silverxpearls**

**Mr. Average**

**roniloveu**

**acosta perez jose ramiro**

**AureliusXsoul**

**Next Update: August 17**


	4. Flight

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**FOUR**

**Flight**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

Up here on the rooftop, the troubles of the world are left – like the tiny specks of light from the many windows – far below him.

Up here is where the wind blows freely and he doesn't have to worry about whether the others know that he sneaks glances at her because now she is right in front of him.

Her hood is lowered – he prefers it down, anyway, then he doesn't just have to look in her eyes, he can look at her face. The wind is blowing her deep purple hair and silky strands of it caress her cheeks, but she makes no move to sweep the strands away, just picks him out with her eyes and holds the gaze.

"You sure you want to do this?" she asks, but she doesn't lift her voice up at the end, so the question sounds like a statement.

"Positive," he whispers.

Without moving, she beckons him towards her silently and he takes a few steps forward so they are very close and now the hem of her cloak whips around his ankles along with hers.

He slips off his shoes and lightly places his bare, green feet on her covered ones, trying to apply as little pressure as possible so it doesn't hurt. She takes his hands and guides them to her shoulders and his touch can burn a hole right through her cloak and into her pale skin.

"Look at me," she says, drawing his eyes away from the sight of their touching feet and into the glistening black pearls of her irises. He drinks in the image of her gaze and something wells up steadily in his chest; it is as though his heart is expanding.

The wind starts blowing stronger and for a second her face disappears from sight, but when the dark cloud of hair lifts suddenly in the lull of the wind, she is smiling at him.

_Look down_, her lips are saying.

He looks.

The Tower is far, far below them now, and the specks of window-light are like stars twinkling beneath their feet. All around them is thick air hanging in this empty dark sky.

But it isn't empty, because there is him and her.

"Perfect," he says.

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

**A/N: **A rather romantic little number, inspired by Superman.

Thanks to all who reviewed the previous chapter and actually liked the poem! You are:

**Rana-the-elven-dragon **- What did you throw at me? Lol. All right, I may write a one shot about what happened on the roof, but that will come later.

**acosta perez jose ramiro **- Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad you liked the poem.

**AureliusXsoul **- Ah, I'm glad that for someone who usually doesn't like poems, you appreciated mine! Yes, the poem IS about Beast Boy and Raven (who else?) and I like being vague and not specifically referring to them.

**Agent of the Divine One **- Thanks for reviewing! Hope you enjoyed this update!

**silverxpearls **- Thanks for the review! I hope you'll like this next update.

**Next Update: August 24**


	5. Terror

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**FIVE**

**Terror**

**-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

She wanted to shut her eyes, draw the curtains, mentally swarm the moon with clouds so that it would stop illuminating the events that were happening below, events that she was powerless to stop. For once in Raven's life sheer emotion overrode all reasoning, and she found her gaze glued to the two figures on the rocks beneath the Tower.

There was a reason why she was up here and not down there with them.

He didn't need a girl like her – she was far too serious for him. She didn't laugh at his jokes, at least, not out loud. Suddenly she wanted to scream, to run out and tell him that yes, she _did _like his sense of humour; she _did _laugh at his jokes and yes, she _did_ think he was funny. But it was too late for that, because some other girl, some girl with beautiful blonde hair that shone in the dark, some girl who was just as powerful as her and who wasn't adverse to lame jokes or parties, had beaten her to it.

They were making faces.

This was a girl he could have fun with, and for a second Raven felt that she could convince herself to accept whoever he chose to be with, as long as he was happy. But that feeling vanished as soon as it came.

She'd never made a face in her entire life – couldn't bring herself down to that level of shamelessness… or up to that level of freedom and self-liberation. Either way, it was out of her league.

So she surrendered.

She didn't know how long she stood there at the window, with the black creeping into her version, and she wasn't aware of the awesome racket that ravaged her room; books, papers, her lamp, the entire bed were but white outlines enveloped in black, seized by a rattling, shaking fit that threatened to explode right out of her room and up into the night sky in the furious shadow of a bird.

A soft, tentative knock on the door sent everything slamming back to their places on her bedroom floor.

Raven slid the door open and came face to face with green eyes, green hair, green skin. A wave of panic seized hold of her insides, almost causing her to fling him back and into the blonde girl who was standing behind him, looking flushed.

"Raven… I heard noises. Is everything okay?"

No. Everything was _not _okay. He was with the wrong girl, she was losing control of herself and…

"Everything's fine."

She closed the door on him.

**--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------**

**A/N: **Just thought we needed a sad one about them. I wrote this after watching the episode 'Terra', and so I imagined this scene taking place when Beast Boy and Terra were having that disgustingly intimate scene on the rocks by the bay, and they _were _making faces and _blushing_. Ugh. Ugh! Forgive the rant, but I just cannot stand Beast Boy and Terra together.

Well, I'm glad everyone enjoyed the previous Superman-inspired post. Thanks to everyone who reviewed. You are:

**silverxpearls**

**acosta perez jose ramiro**

**ravenloganx3**

**Agent of the Divine One**

**AureliusXsoul**

**Next Update: August 31**


	6. Dinner at Titans Tower

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**SIX**

**Dinner at Titans Tower**

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Appetizer**

_Their eyes meet over the two plates of fresh rucola salad with strawberries and sun dried tomatoes and they share a secret smile._

"You know, I never thought I'd say this but… you're not such a bad cook after all, Beast Boy."

"It's only salad, Raven."

"Still…"

…

"What are you laughing about?"

"It's just… I think the only book I've read that _you haven't _is a cookbook."

"Mm hmm. Very funny."

"Wait till you try the main course."

_A fresh burst of summer sweetness melts away in the mouth and they both briefly wonder if that is what it's like to be in love._

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Entrée**

_Her eyes widen as she breathes in the aroma of spices and herbs and her mouth marvels in a soundless 'O' at the tenderness of the meat, while his eyes crinkle in delight._

"Okay. This is _really _good."

"Glad you like it."

"I thought you didn't eat meat."

…

"What are you laughing about now?"

"Nothing, nothing!"

_He smiles again as she brings another forkful to her mouth. Watching her lips, he wonders whether she knows. She wonders what he's thinking, and where he learnt to cook like that._

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Dessert**

_The alternating layers of thick chocolate mousse, moist chocolate sponge cake and chocolate ganache culminate in a crunchy cornflake base as solid as his devotion for her._

"Amazing. Just amazing."

"You take to my cooking better than you do with my jokes."

"Be grateful."

"Let's move to the couch. You can make us some herbal tea."

_She comes back with two mugs of steaming hot tea, and she is still wondering._

"Beast Boy… the main course – what was it? Beef, chicken?"

"Tofu."

Beast Boy dodges a flying cushion and laughs delightedly at the expression on Raven's face.

"Gotcha!"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**A/N: **Hmm, I think I was feeling hungry when I wrote this. I've always thought it would be funny to have Beast Boy trick Raven into eating some tofu and he has done remarkably well. Right.

Anyway, WHAT? Terra and Slade have a romantic relationship in the cartoon? That's cool, actually. She should really leave Beast Boy alone. It irks me when they are together.

Thanks to reviewers:

**silverxpearls **

**AureliusXsoul **

**.Lukittymuffin. **

**Remus-Lupins-Sexy-Lover**

**Next Update: September 7**


	7. Second Date

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**SEVEN**

**Second Date**

* * *

Beast Boy studied her face, and loved the way her dark hair shone slightly in the dim light that illuminated her room. She wore the deep look of concentration on her face, the same one she had when she was reading one of her books, and that was exactly what she was doing now. 

Raven looked up and caught Beast Boy's eye. This time he didn't look away like he always did.

"What are you staring at?" she asked, even though she knew that he had been looking at her.

"You," Beast Boy replied boldly, and enjoyed the rosy pink blush that crept across her cheeks.

Raven gave a wry smile, "I'm trying to read, Beast Boy. Go look at my bookshelf, or something. I played your video game the last time, so maybe you should try reading a book this time."

So he went to peruse her dark and dusty bookshelf somewhat half-heartedly. That is, until he reached into a shadowy nook created by two thick tomes and pulled out a slim book that looked as if it'd been pored over time and time again.

Glancing at the cover, Beast Boy's eyes widened.

Then he gave a hoot of laughter so loud and so sudden that Raven almost jumped out of her skin. Her head snapped up from her book as she shot an annoyed look in Beast Boy's direction.

"What are you… oh no. Oh no. Not that!" she raised a hand and the book soared out of Beast Boy's grasp and landed on the bed where it flipped open to reveal glossy comic book pages. Raven blushed an angry crimson and slammed the comic book shut, as Beast Boy, still laughing uncontrollably, staggered over to her and placed an arm around her shoulders.

"The_ Hulk_? Dude, Raven, I didn't you liked green beasts so much!"

"Oh shut up."

Beast Boy grinned wickedly. _She's never going to live this one down_, he thought.

* * *

**A/N: **Long break, but updates are back. Terribly sorry for the delays and all that. 

You may have forgotten the previous chapter but I haven't forgotten those who reviewed, so thanks to:

**silverxpearls**

**AureliusXsoul**

**acosta perez jose ramiro**

**AJandtheVoicesInMyHead**

**roniloveu**

**Next Update: September 29**


	8. Truth or Dare

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**EIGHT**

**Truth or Dare**

* * *

The room is dark, dotted with sleek black leather armchairs around tables small enough to hold two glasses of alcoholic beverages and chips, if desired. There is a stage, which all the chairs face, and on the stage a single, lonely microphone stand greets the audience. Behind the stage, only a plain dark blue curtain and above the drapes no sign that announces the name of the event. There is no sign because there is no need for a sign. Those who come here are regulars; they have their tables, their usual drinks ('Blast', they call it, because that's exactly what a shot does to you, no pun intended) and their usual witty, poetic lines. 

"There she is. That's Raven."

"I heard she's reciting tonight."

"She writes beautifully – the most tragic stuff. It's brilliant."

"Free verse?"

"Never rhymes."

"At all? Intriguing."

"She's into dark energy and emotionless living. It's deep."

The girl walks up to the microphone and the people at the tables stop drinking, cease talking. A silence washes over the diners-cum-audience as they watch every moment she makes.

She wears a dark blue cloak with a hood, but the hood is lowered so they can catch a full view of her mesmerizing deep purple hair and amethyst eyes. Her pale skin shines like the moon against the dark backdrop of the stage, and there the microphone makes a soft whine of protest as she reaches up to switch it on.

She begins to recite solemnly:

"I have a friend who's half a boy

and also half a beast.

It's for this simple reason that

on meat he does not feast.

His eyes; they twinkle like the stars.

His smile blinds like the sun.

The villains fear his changing form:

from him they cannot run.

O Beast Boy, you are strong and cool;

I love your wit, your charm.

And I simply cannot wait

to hold you in my arms."

When she finishes, there is a stunned silence.

"I thought you said she wrote _dark _poetry."

"I… uh… guess she thought a change would be nice…"

"…"

The girl remains standing on stage just long enough to catch the eye of a solitary figure seated in one of the booth seats half-hidden in the shadows at the back of the room. Somehow, only the mysterious lone man sees the minute smile on her face.

**o o o**

Outside the club, Raven slips her hand into the proffered green one and the person who had been alone sidles up close to the dark-haired girl.

"I can't believe I just let you talk me into reciting that stupid poem in front of everyone."

"A dare is a dare. And I didn't think it was stupid."

"They'll _never _let me back in."

The boy by her side chuckles as the flap of her cloak pulls itself slightly apart and a slim silver pen surrounded by black energy floats into the air in front of them. The pen spins for a second or two, glinting in the moonlight, and then stops with its tip pointing towards the boy.

Raven smiles a cunning sort of smile. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare."

* * *

**A/N: **Ah, some sort of vaguely romantic entry with a poem inside. This will be the last update for a while mainly because I've run out of ideas and I don't like to force out entries, so apologies to my few faithful readers. I won't be able to give an exact date on which I'll start updating again, but rest assured if you've put this story on the alert function then you'll know when it's next updated. Meanwhile, you can check out my other Teen Titan fic, if you want. If not, I know there are plenty of really, really good BBxRae one shots out there.

Once again, thanks to all who reviewed the previous chapter!

**Next Update: unavailable**


	9. Holding Hands

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**NINE**

**Holding Hands**

* * *

He didn't know when, but somehow along the way, he slipped his hand into hers, and she made no attempt to pull away. Her hand felt cold in his, and he was slightly surprised, because everyone he'd ever known had told him that he had exceptionally cold hands; hers were colder, but he liked the feel of them, liked the way they felt in his grasp, and he thought they fit perfectly.

It was the first time he'd seen her in years. After the team split, he never kept in contact with any of the members – not even Robin – until one day she showed up outside his doorstep. He'd fallen for her all over again, then, seeing her long unkempt hair and the glimpse of pale skin beneath a wrinkled dark blue cloak. She barely knew what to call him, tumbled into his arms instead, and as he led her in he felt the entire room shaking. Whether it was her powers or his nerves, he never quite found out.

Time had leapt by with its habitual speed, and he'd decided to take her out to talk about things. "A little sunshine will do you good," he'd told her after she freshened up. She looked so pale he wondered if she'd spent the years locked up in some secluded room.

Barely touching the crowd around them, they both made their way forward silently. He'd given up talking when he realized that no matter what he said she would not reply, and settled for a silence short of companionable.

Then someone called her name.

"Raven?"

He felt her hand stiffen in his as they turned around to face the one who had broken the silence, and he tensed into preparation, ready to protect her from whatever villain was behind them. But it was just Beast Boy, looking slightly older, taller, and more muscular.

Beside him Raven stifled a gasp.

"You…" She had uttered her first word. He hardly noticed the fact that her voice was hoarse from disuse; he was too busy entertaining the disappointment at her first word not being his but some other's name instead. He watched the two Titans staring at each other, both immobile, and sensed that something was not right.

"Raven? This time it was his turn to ask, but she paid no attention to him, reacted as though he hadn't spoken at all.

"I see you've made some new friends," beast Boy hardly bothered keeping the bitterness out of his tone.

"_You _were the one who left." The girl beside him growled.

"And you never bothered to wait?"

"I waited! I waited _three years_!"

"You–"

"You were too busy looking for _her_!"

"It's always about her, isn't it, Raven? You think that everything I do, I do because of her. Well here's the truth: I went after her that day because I had to make sure she was gone – gone from my mind – gone completely, before I could ever hope to get your attention again. I left because I had to destroy the memory of her. _I couldn't go on living with her in my head and you in my heart_."

He watched as Beast Boy turned away, stubborn mouth turned down at the sides, eyes glistening slightly, and then headed off into the crowd.

The almost lifeless figure attached to him was still and quiet.

And then, she looked up. He heard the whispered words "I'm sorry" as she peeled her hand away from his, cheeks blushing, and with a louder, clearer, "Beast Boy, wait!" and disappeared into the throng of moving people.

Aqualad was left standing in the middle of the mall with only his cold, empty hands.

* * *

**A/N: **Okay, I think this is one of them stories that you'll have to read again once I clear up the immense confusion it created. It spawned from this idea: after the last episode of Season 5 of "Teen Titans, Go!", when Terra disappeared, Beast Boy left the team to look for her and the team slowly disintegrated and broke up, each member going their own way. So this little story takes place about 3 years later, and obviously Raven seeks comfort in Aqualad, a member of Titans East whom she kinda went nuts over in one of the Teen Titan episodes. But of course, who should reappear but Beast Boy, with the truth about his disappearance, no less.

So read it again if you want, with all this in mind. Otherwise, don't read it again and just comment!

When I get more ideas I'll upload them, but until then, this story remains on hold!

I haven't forgotten the reviewers, though, so here's a little note of appreciation to those who reviewed Chapter 8:

**acosta perez jose ramiro **– thank you for reviewing! Yes, I'm glad you got the essence of the one shot, which was the hilarious contrast between Raven's supposed dark nature and the goofy little lovey-dovey poem she read out!

**silverxpearls **– thank you for reviewing! I'm glad you enjoyed the previous story, and I hope you'll like this one as well. Yes, I'll definitely update when I get more ideas!

**Agent of the Divine One** – Yes, it was definitely out of character for Raven, although I kind of wanted it that way, which was why I even included the anonymous audience members talking about how 'dark' her poetry was meant to be! But I do understand it might have been _too _out of character for her!

**Toran of the Raysed** – thank you for reviewing!

**Tammy Tamborine **– thanks for the review! I'm glad you liked the previous story, and I'm glad you found it amusing because I certainly did.

**CrazyEmotions **– thank you for the compliment, and the review! I hope you like this update as well.

**Next Update: unavailable**


	10. Mind Games

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**TEN**

**Mind Games**

* * *

He stood in front of the huge metal door, his small frame confident against the enormous entrance before him, for it was no obstacle. As the door slid open, what little light that was in the corridor fled as deep shadows emerged and seemed to pull the boy through the doorway and into the room. Undaunted by the darkness, he stepped in and gave a cheerful, if rather smug, nod to the girl in the navy cloak who was glaring at him. 

"You made a promise," he said, as though the four words had enough power to stop her from leaping across the room and throttling his neck. But they did; they called to mind in both heads the memory of that sunny day when he had finally persuaded her to take up a video game challenge. They had made a bet, which she had lost, and now he had come to claim his prize.

Beast Boy headed to the dresser and picked up the intricate hand mirror resting innocently on it. "I'll be quick," he told the girl, who still looked as though she was regretting the entire thing.

"Just don't do so much damage."

He looked deep into the mirror and then his reflection was gone and something tugged at his shoulders. He went diving headfirst into the mirror, and the bumpy ride into Nevermore was pretty much the same as the last except now there was no half-teen, half-robot with him.

She was there to meet him in the place with red stars and dark asteroids cruising through some far distant space; her pink cloak ruffled gently although there seemed to be no breeze, and the smile on her cheeks lit up her purple eyes. He couldn't help smiling too. "Hey," she said, like it was the most natural thing in the world.

They talked about everything and anything as she walked him away from the tiny black crows with red eyes to the huge stone doorway, beyond which lay a brilliant landscape of yellow sky, pink grass and flowers. There was Raven, at his side, smiling and laughing at his jokes. And when she finally gave him a hug before disappearing in a cloud of pink just past the stone arch they'd crossed, he still remembered the girlish laughter that had escaped her lips and it hung like a song in the air around him.

The day passed by very quickly after that: he'd let her cry on his shoulder until it was his uniform that turned sopping wet while her grey robes stayed dry. He made a daisy chain for her to cheer her up, and just before he finished it she disappeared, but he was so sure he had seen the tiniest of smiles on her face.

He had great fun sparring with green-cloaked Raven, who knew all the cool moves and who taught them to him without hesitation. And, when he'd suggested that they take a joyride on a black energy disc, she immediately made one and sent them zooming around the air so recklessly they crashed onto the grass and rolled around in it in a tangle of arms and legs, hooting and yelling like hooligans. When Beast Boy picked himself up from the grass, she had gone.

He tried briefly to calm the red-cloaked Raven down, but her anger was much too strong for him to turn it into anything positive, and when the bespectacled version of her strolled up to him and made the remark, "You won't get a smile out of her anytime soon," he gratefully left the red and followed the yellow instead, and they went off to sit on a large rock, where she told him amazing stories he'd never heard before. He listened in rapture, and remembered every single word that she said. Before she left, she gave him a serious nod, and said, "You were a very nice listener."

The words were still ringing in his head when he came across the slouched figure of another Raven, floating horizontally in mid air, sleeping. He spent 15 minutes waking her up, and managed to convince her to levitate him as well so they could hover in the air together. After casting the spell, she went right back to sleep and no matter how hard he tried to get her to talk to him, she just would not wake up.

He spent the last few hours playing games with the one that reminded him of a child, and finally, when the pink-robed Raven came up to him to tell him that his time was up, none of him wanted to leave at all. But he picked himself up and followed the pink cloak back through the colourful meadow and into the darkness of the landscape he'd landed in when he first came through the mirror.

"I had a great time," he stuttered, feeling like they had reached the end of a weird but beautiful date.

"Me too. You have to come back again sometime, no matter what I say," she said, and suddenly leaned forward and wrapped her arms around him in a quick embrace.

A black claw was coming down from the sky – his ride back to the Tower.

"Wait! How come I didn't see –" As was lifted up, he shouted out the only question that had been running through his head the entire day, and below him Raven smiled again, sending his heart to the heavens.

"Ask me later!" she shouted back.

So when he was back on solid ground in Raven's room, with the girl in dark blue gazing bemusedly at him, he scratched his head and posed the question in its entirety.

"Hey, Raven? How come I didn't see your… I mean, I looked everywhere but I couldn't find the romantic version of you."

The side of her mouth lifted in a sly grin as she picked up the mirror in her hands and studied it.

"Oh, really? But she was here the whole time!"

And later in his room, he realized that when she had said that, she had been looking at her own reflection.

* * *

**A/N: **Hmm… I thought it would be fun to have Beast Boy go back into Raven's mind. Hope you enjoyed this update. It's strange but I seem to be getting a trickle of ideas for this piece of fiction, which is more than I can say for my other Teen Titans story. Anyway, thanks to all who reviewed the previous chapter. 

**beautifulpurpleflame **– Thank you for reviewing! I'm glad the entry made sense… I think I wanted it to make sense most of all.

**Brig.Seth **– I doubt you'll be reading this because you reviewed the fourth story, but thanks for the review all the same!

**KT **– Thank you! Err… first kiss? Hmm… somehow the thought of young animated characters kissing turns me off. But I'll think about it!

**El Queso de Malicioso **– Hello! Well, better late than never I say. Glad you enjoy reading these oneshots and I hope you like the latest one.

**AureliusXsoul** – Hmm. Yeah, I can't believe you missed a chapter. But oh well, glad you liked it and reviewed all the same! Actually, if you have ideas and don't mind someone else messing with them because you don't have the time to write them out, I'd love to work on them (sad or not!). If you'd like to work on them yourself, however, I totally understand.

Hmm, yeah, I just realized that Beast Boy headed back to the Tower in that last episode. But oh well, perhaps he changed his mind in the night and slipped out? Haha… anything could have happened!

**acosta perez jose ramiro **– Yes, I definitely prefer Raven and Beast Boy, although Raven and Aqualad did cross my mind because of all the hearts she had around her during that episode… I think it was Deep Six?

**silverxpearls** – Yes, that's exactly what I wanted: sweet and sad. Thank you for reviewing!

Well, I thought I had an idea but I haven't got round to writing it down yet, so I can't place an exact date for an update.

**Next Update: unavailable**


	11. Worlds Apart

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**ELEVEN**

**Worlds Apart**

* * *

She read thick tomes of ancient history and magical spells and incantations; he gawked over the latest models of mopeds and computer games in glossy magazine pages. She had mastered the art of meditation; he had mastered the art of using tofu in everything he cooked. It was more than a world that divided them, yet he had unexpectedly, miraculously even, climbed the mountains and crossed the seas and had discovered _her _in all her foreign splendour, and he fell in love with this unfamiliar.

She, of course, was ignorant. It wasn't so much the fact that she felt safe, cocooned in her own world, but because his was too far, too loud, too emotional, too _hard _to reach – and why try anyway, when she knew perfectly well the dangers involved in leaving the vacuum of self inside her to step into the unknown, the dangerous? So she stayed where she was, and it was he who made the long journey.

But the missed glances, the hesitant touches, the attempts to reach out to her and pull her out of her shell all failed. Still, he never gave up. He was always there whether she knew it or not: the invisible hand that brought her to her feet if she was felled by an adversary; the one who rammed into the enemy just before it attacked her; the one who always, always had his eye on her figure, sitting under the tree engrossed in a book even while he was desperately trying to win the game of Stankball. It had been him, all this while.

But she never knew.

It was only years later, when she wondered why he constantly got on her nerves, why she was perfectly fine with every member of the team except him, why she always never laughed at any of his jokes, why she tried so hard to be so mean to him.

It was because she was in love.

In love with this weird green boy, who would do anything just to see her smile – it was true – who would give up his life in exchange for that one day, one hour, one minute, one _second _in which she could feel pure happiness, and nothing else. No anger, no misery, no rage, no Trigon, no betrayal, no Malkior, no nothing. Perhaps not even him. Just to be happy.

And now she wishes she could turn back the hands of the clock to the time when the penny was pressed, searing, into her palm. She wishes for that moment to come again, so she can cling to it, and instead of being consumed entirely with fears of the prophecy and her father, she would take his hand, and hold it, if only for an instant.

Because now she is in love.

But he will never know.

* * *

**A/N: **Ah, it is one of those plotless stories that are filled with regret and sorrow. It's strange, I started this wanting to end it one way and it came out like this. It's personal.

Thanks to those who reviewed, we go from most recent to the oldest:

**Agent of the Divine One** – CONGRATULATIONS! You submitted the 60th review! Unfortunately, there isn't a years supply worth of , so all you get is an extra big THANK YOU!

**Tammy Tambourine** – Haha, yes, the chapter was pretty sweet, and I had fun writing about Beast Boy and the other Ravens. Such a change.

**AureliusXsoul **– Gee… I never had that in mind, that Beast Boy would make the rest of the Ravens fall in love with him. Actually, I believe they already _are _in love with him. But that's if you subscribe to the theory that Raven loves Beast Boy already. The idea has yet to come out into words, but do watch out for it!

**El Queso de Malicioso **– Ouch. "even if it's just a smirk"? Ouch.

**acosta perez jose ramiro **– Thank you for the review, I'm glad you liked the interactions between Beast Boy and all the other Ravens.

**pimpofthetitans** – What a name. I'm very glad you like the story so far, though, and thank you very much for the review!

**Brig.Seth** – No problem, you don't have to review at every chapter, but I'm glad you do so I know which ones you especially like!

**silverxpearls** – Thanks for the review! While, the show let BB in once, so I've done it again, but I think twice is enough. Haha.

**Next Update: unavailable**


	12. On the Rooftop

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**Author's Note: **When I uploaded the first oneshot in this collection, a reader asked me "What happened on the rooftop??" and ever since then I've been wondering: _What happened on the rooftop_??? Well, this is what happened.

**TWELVE**

**On the Rooftop**

* * *

It was bound to happen.

Starting out simple – a shy sidelong glance, a smothered breath of laughter at a joke – it had grown steadily into a feeling that had propelled one to notice the other's circumstances in battle, and to occasionally come to their aid, which progressed to a comforting hand on a shoulder, a moment of connection on the rocks, a lucky penny pressed into a cool, pale palm.

It was bound to happen, so when she found the single red rose and a piece of paper with the word 'rooftop' on it lying on the corridor outside her door, no bubble of confusion or curiosity welled in her chest. Just the something she didn't know she had been waiting for; the end of a long anticipation that had lain dormant and undiscovered inside her.

And although she'd swept the incriminating evidence into her room in seconds, the intoxicating scent of the rose lingered over her no matter where she went, as did the cryptic one-word message that had drilled a hole in her head. No doubt there was a decision to be made; the sender of the gifts had cunningly kept himself out of sight in an attempt to alleviate the difficulty of her decision, but still she found herself at crossroads.

It was only when the giant ball of fire traced its slow, full arc across the heavens and was finally displaced by a brilliant moon that outshone the star-splotched heavens that she eventually made up her mind…

* * *

The night is surprisingly warm, and he stares into the black waters of the bay, wondering if she will turn up. There is only him on the rooftop, and so the biting wind whips around his one solitary figure and chills him to the bone.

It's sad it has to come to a confrontation (which is what he calls this, now) because he hates quarreling of any kind. But there isn't much of a choice, anyway, because either way he looks at it, whether he is tossing restlessly in bed at night or just standing outside her door fist poised to knock, he has to tell her. It doesn't matter if she doesn't feel the same – and deep inside his heart he is all ready for rejection – he just wants to get it out in the air. No more tensed, awkward silences, no more broken heart-shaped box with a mirror under the lid.

Just the truth.

So when the door finally opens behind him and he turns around to see her there, he isn't ready for his mouth to go dry, or for the words he'd rehearsed time and time again to suddenly fling themselves into the next breeze that hits the two figures, standing, silently on the rooftop of a T-shaped tower.

"You came…"

Silence

"Raven, I…"

She cringes, and he wants to hit himself, because the words sound so stupid, so childish, so…

"I'm sorry, I…"

She apologises, and turns to go, so he does the only thing he can think of at that moment. He grabs her hand. She pulls away as though his very touch burnt her skin, but she doesn't leave.

"Please (he hates to beg), just… just _stay_. For a while. You know why we're here." He wonders if the pained expression on her face is the same one on his, and then he realizes that she'd flinched at the word 'we're'.

"I've been thinking, and–"

Her eyes widen, she clasps her hands to her ears.

"Raven, please – just–"

Her face is gone, he sees only dark purple hair.

But he can't let her get away, no. He reaches out, grabs silk cloak fabric, steps forward and grabs her arms – both of them – and forces her to face him so when she finally does, her eyes are shining with tears threatening to spill down her cheeks and her words tumble over one another in a torrent. "No, I… can't, I… Beast Boy! Stop, I'm sorry, I can't, I… just – I know _Robin_ better than I know you!"

His eyes glint suddenly in the dark and she knows she should stop speaking, because she has touched something in him that has awakened a terrifying anger. "_Robin_? What does he have to do with this? What does he have to do with anything? It isn't about knowing somebody, Raven, it's about how you _feel _about the person. You don't know everything – you can't know everything, but that's fine."

"I've been in his mind."

"Have you forgotten? _I've been in yours_."

He had.

Suddenly, she is seeing into herself, her mind reeling backwards down the long dark tunnel that he'd traveled through once and she sees now what he saw then: a lonely, beautiful girl with so many hidden emotions and secrets, and although he doesn't fully understand, although he doesn't know everything about her, he loves her already.

"Have you forgotten, Raven? I've been in your mind too."

"And you haven't left."

She looks up, into his eyes, and she sees something there that hadn't been there before. Something like gentleness, concern, but she can't quite place it yet.

As if reading her mind, he smiles.

"Don't worry," he says, "you have all the time in the world. We have all the time in the world."

* * *

**Author's Note: **There! I've been planning to write something like that for a while, and I'm glad it's out. Well, this is just one way in which they could get together… there are many, many more.

Thank you to those who reviewed the previous chapter:

**ELLIEdangerous **– Hello! Thanks for the review. Hmm, yes, now that I look at it, it's more depressing than beautiful.

**silverxpearls **– Haha! I can tell you like happy stuff! Thanks for the review!

**Egglette** – Hello! Thank you for reviewing, and I'm glad you enjoyed the past stories. Hope you enjoy this one too! (Nah, there are greater writers out there!)

**pimpofthetitans** – Thanks for the review! Glad you enjoy this collection.

**Brig.Seth **– Yes, I guess I was in the perfect mood to write a sad piece then.

**AureliusXsoul **– Haha, yes in my mind, he would take her back. But I just didn't write that… Happy and bittersweet don't go together in one oneshot. Haha…

**Tammy Tambourine **– Thanks, I'm glad you liked the previous chapter. Angsty? Oh dear…

**acosta perez jose ramiro **– I never really dealt with the Titans as Garfield or Rachel. In fact, I didn't even know Raven's name was Rachel Roth… I only became a fan of them when I watched 'Teen Titans Go!', actually. Haha.

**Agent of the Divine One **– No year's supply of anything, because I don't have a year's supply of anything to give. Haha

**CrazyEmotions **– It's unavailable because I'm busy! But here's another update, I hope you enjoy it. SHUCKS I hate making spelling errors, terribly sorry about the Malchior-Malkior mistake!!

**warprince2000 **– Sorry for the unpredictable updates, but I have examinations on at the moment so it's hard for me to update regularly. Well, I hope this update will be good enough for a while!

**SxStrngSamurai13** – Thank you for the review! Glad you liked the previous update.

**Beik** – When I first read your review I didn't know if it was a compliment or a criticism, but I get it now. Haha! Thanks for the review!

So as I was writing this story I was wondering, what made me pair Raven and Beast Boy together? I guess it was because they were so different, and their interactions were a blast to watch. And also when the team fought the bad guys, somehow Beast Boy would kinda save Raven and other times Raven would kinda save him. Sweet. So when 'The Beast Within' and other Raven&BeastBoy type of episodes came out, I was rather pleased.

My my, quite chatty today, aren't we?

How did **you** get hooked onto this pairing?

**Next Update: unavailable **(this will go soon, promise!)


	13. Red hood and The Beast

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans, neither do I own the fairytales that appear here today.

**Author's Note: **I feel I ought to explain things before the story begins, but I won't.

**THIRTEEN**

**Red-hood and The Beast**

* * *

She grasps the basket; it is heavy in her hands. 

"Are you sure you want to do this?" her father asks her. For all the man that he is, he is still half-metal and will never truly sacrifice himself for another.

"I could go, instead," her mother suggests. But she is old, and tempestuous.

So Red-hood pulls on her crimson cloak and draws the hood up over her head without the help of her hands, which are holding the wicker basket. No welcoming smell of freshly baked apple pie and ginger beer wafts from it, only the weight of ammunition made lighter by the fact that its deliverer has herself the power to heal.

"I'll manage," she says, and steps out into the night.

The forest is a dangerous maze. There are things that come out only when it turns dark, things that terrify, things that lure you into ghastly traps, hasty ends, things that devour you whole, beating heart and screaming soul, things that will never allow you to see the light of day.

Red-hood blends in with the shadows. Her eyes are fiery, but even then the wolves can smell her from miles away and softly now, slowly, they come towards her. Great grey hulking shapes detach themselves from black mist and grow larger as they approach. Their eyes are yellow pinpricks in the dark. Red-hood can see their fangs glisten, can feel their hot breath at her shins. Four… seven… nine… thirteen of them, she counts.

She can take care of herself. She is only slightly worried about the basket.

The first two lunge at her, jaws open to sink teeth into flesh. She throws them back against the trees with one outstretched hand. She hears the crack of bone – one wolf remains a crumpled heap at the base of a tree, but the other is struggling to stand, now already on its feet…

The next four attack, one aiming for her ankles, the other two for her neck, the last for the basket. She creates a black energy disc, which she flings at the pair going for her neck. At the same time the wolf aiming for the basket is sent flying into the last of the four.

But the others close in soon after, taking leaps in mid-air or pouncing straight on. Red-hood silently fends them off, one-by-one, two-by-two and whole groups of them at times. They keep coming, snarling jaws snapping air. They are hungry.

Red-hood is tired of this game, and decides to end it once and for all. Her eyes flare a bright, hot white.

"Azareth… metrion… zinthos."

A black flash that fades to white.

When Red-hood opens her eyes the wolves are gone, and she carries on walking. Too late – she's already sensed the sudden quick movement behind her. One wolf left. One wolf flying through the air straight for the back of her head. A warning goes off in her mind, she whirls around and for a split second she's looking into searing golden irises that have her paralyzed to the spot.

Then – a whiz of green. The eyes are gone.

Red-hood lets out a gasp, unbidden.

In the dark, her eyes make out two shapes scuffling. There is a deep, earthy growl, a loud snap like the sound of a twig breaking, an anguished howl, and silence. Red-hood remembers the burst of emerald that saved her life before it disappears into the forest.

And then she begins to run.

Perhaps it is because she knows that time is not on her side. Perhaps it is because she knows she is near her destination. Perhaps it is because she knows that there are grey wolves encircling the tiny wooden hut lit only by the dying flame of a candle, and that more are coming. She can see him now in her mind's eye, struggling to stay alive, like a bird with its wings clipped.

On and on Red-hood runs, so fast that now she is a blur flying through the forest. The boughs of trees tear at her cloak of blood-red and scratch her cheeks, but she carries on in her single-minded purpose.

In the hut, the boy staggers to his feet to welcome the first of the wolves. He will not go down without a fight, he thinks.

She breaks through the line of trees and into the clearing where the hut is. Paw prints in the snow. The smell of blood and fire. A howl sends her dashing for the door, just in time. She stops the grey wolf in mid-leap, its snout only inches from the boy's chest, and sends it through the wall with a crash.

The boy looks up. His face is a mask.

"Raven!"

Not joy, but a warning that proves itself useless because she feels sharp claws at her back and now she's stumbling forward into the hut, with a wolf on her. But something else crashes through the door and sends her tumbling to the floor, over and over. Colours whirl in front of her eyes: red, grey, green, red, grey, green. A cacophony of noise. She tries to fend off the attacking wolf.

There is a familiar deep earthy howl and although the pressure is still crushing her, she suddenly feels inexplicably safe, and warm. Like she's been saved, again.

Another shout brings her to her senses, "Raven!"

Her eyes fly open to show the boy charging at the wolf on her, birdarang gleaming and ready to strike. But this wolf, it's a different colour, it's a different wolf, it's _green_, and she opens her mouth to shout No, stop, but it's too late; there is a slash, and a painful whine…

"NO!"

Robin drops the weapon, realizing his mistake. The green wolf collapses into Raven's arms and she cradles it, but already it's fast changing: fur receding into skin, snout shortening into a small, delicate nose, hands and legs replacing fore and hind legs… everything changing but the colour.

And it's Beast Boy bleeding in her arms, the same Beast Boy who'd saved her from the attack earlier on in the forest, and who had now saved her once more.

"Beast Boy…" Robin drops to his knees.

But the green boy has eyes only for the girl in red.

"No…" she says softly, once again, and her tears begin to fall. She watches them land on his wounds and even as they heal themselves she begins to understand a little of what it means to love, and love so deeply. And this time she allows herself to believe, to believe in the magic of it all, the fairytale, the possibility of a happy ending.

The tears are gone, so are his wounds and, strangely enough, everything else except him and her.

Beast Boy is smiling at her, as he always does, as he always will.

This time, Raven can feel herself smiling back.

* * *

**Author's Note: **It's Little Red Riding Hood and Beauty and The Beast with a Titan-twist. I didn't mean to make Cyborg and Starfire Raven's parents, but that's how they ended up. I had absolutely no intention of turning Robin into a grandmother, though, and for that I'm glad. 


	14. Inches

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**FOURTEEN**

**Inches**

"I can tell you what pain is," she says, simply.

Her eyes are blank, and as he looks into them he can see nothing, no anger, no fear, no sorrow. And he knows she has drawn the curtains over her soul again. Thick black, suffocating curtains.

He sits beside her on the bench. Before them, the dark waters of the bay, reflecting tired starlight in the occasional glint. Behind them, a T-shaped tower, casting an enormous shadow which envelopes them in its coolness. There is a four-inch gap between them. And, trapped within those four inches, a world of difference.

Her hood is drawn back, her dark hair tucked behind pale ears. He wants to say many things about her hair, but somehow the words never make their flight off his tongue.

"It's like this... knot. Inside of you, in the pit of your stomach. Or deep in your chest. At the back of your head. And it clenches itself, and all the time you want to scream, but you don't. You keep the pain in. You bottle it up. You never let it out. Because to let it out would be dangerous."

He knows he shouldn't be looking at her, but he is. He can see her gritting her teeth in the moonlight, and the hairs on his arm bristle.

"So you create this vortex within yourself. And this pain, it becomes a sanctuary. You immerse yourself in it, like how a man holds his breath and plunges into the deep end of a pool, and never resurfaces."

If she was any other normal girl, things would be easier. She would cry, drops of pearl rolling down her cheeks, and he would pull her close to him, and she would cling, sobbing, to him, till daybreak.

But she is not.

She stares into the distance, stony, cold, hard. And he is at a loss for what to do. Her strength weakens him. Her silence assails him.

"Sometimes I wake up wanting to kill everybody. It scares even me."

And she looks down at his green hand, gripping the edges of his seat, and she wishes he would place his hand over hers, as if just his touch could take away all her hurt. What she wants is to feel someone else's warmth, to feel like there is life in this world worth protecting. It is what every super hero needs. But what she really wants is for someone to be there, to say, yes, you've been holding up very well, Raven, and if you need me, I'll be here (because she will never ask for help), you can depend on me.

But he makes no move, and neither will she, and they continue to sit, side by side, and only ever just four inches apart.


	15. Paragraph Plays: Pizza

Dislcaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**FIFTEEN**

**Paragraph Plays: Pizza**

**

* * *

  
**

_Scene._

_The Titans' favourite pizza joint._

WAITER: Hello! What'll you have today?

BEAST BOY: I want a large Hawaiian pizza, no ham, and extra pineapples. Oh, and I'd like those little tofu cubes, if you have them. But not the tofu-ham ones, because those have got a little bit of meat in them still, I think. And I want a medium Jump City Supremo with the sauce on the side. I want to replace the shredded chicken with tempeh and extra helpings of all vegetables except green ones. But green olives are fine. I'm okay with _that_ green. Oh, and one large chocolate soy milkshake. Soy. Remember that.

_Waiter scribbles furiously on a notepad, then scurries off to the kitchen._

_Beast Boy beams widely at Raven, seated opposite him._

_Pause._

RAVEN: See – that's why I don't eat.


	16. Paragraph Plays: Halloween

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**SIXTEEN**

**Paragraph Plays: Halloween**

**ONE**

_The Titans Tower._

_Halloween night._

_Enter:_

_ROBIN dressed as Slade._

_STARFIRE in a long black dress and witch's hat._

_CYBORG in a huge bear suit._

CYBORG: Man! I don't know why I let BB talk me into wearing this thing.

_Robin and Starfire stifle giggles._

_Enter RAVEN in her usual dark cloak. Nothing is different about her._

STARFIRE: Raven? You have not the costume for the Halloween?

RAVEN: I don't celebrate.

ROBIN: Aw come on Raven. Halloween's the one night you get to scare each other and not feel guilty about it.

CYBORG: Man, wait till you see BB's costume. If that's not scary, then I don't know what is!

ROBIN: So where's Beast Boy?

_Enter BEAST BOY, in a cloak identical to Raven's. His skin is a pale white (the work of body paint), and there is even a red diamond-shaped gem stuck to his forehead._

STARFIRE: Beast Boy! You are… Raven!

_Raven, on seeing Beast Boy, grows a deep red, transforms into a hideous black creature and chases Beast Boy all over the Tower._

_Pause._

CYBORG: Now _that's _scary. (_Beat._) She don't need a costume.

* * *

**TWO**

_The Titans Tower._

_Halloween night._

_ROBIN (dressed as Slade), STARFIRE (dressed as a witch), CYBORG (dressed as Frankenstein) and BEAST BOY (dressed as a vampire) enter, admiring each others' costumes._

STARFIRE: Robin, your costume for the Halloween is so… real.

ROBIN: I looked in the mirror and scared myself.

CYBORG: Yo BB, I think you got your fang on the wrong way.

BEAST BOY: I think you're scarier without your costume, Cy. (_Pause._) Hey, where's Raven?

_Enter RAVEN in a frilly pink dress, shiny wings attached to her back, and a little golden tiara on her head. Her hair, dyed blond, had been curled. She wears makeup and carries a fluffy star-shaped wand._

_Silence._

BEAST BOY: Uh… Raven? Halloween's not about scaring people _to death_.


	17. Tea for Two

Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans.

**SEVENTEEN**

**Tea for Two**

He didn't know if she would come, but he took a seat anyway. It was a tiny table for two, tucked away in the back of the new café that had taken over the old pizza joint. He breathed in the smell of wood and coffee beans, marveling at the way Jump City had changed, transformed into a landscape that was so different from what he'd remembered it as a kid.

His green tea soy latte arrived, and he smiled wryly at its shade of green. So familiar, and yet, so long ago…

When the shadow fell across the table, it wasn't surprise that gripped him, because he'd sensed her presence the minute she'd entered the doors. Rather, he felt a dull ache in this chest; it was the last thing he'd expected to feel.

"Hello."

He was proud of himself. No cheesy 'You came', 'You remembered' lines. Just something plain and simple, something mature.

Because that was what they both were, now.

"It's… good to see you."

If he was thrown off by the sentimentality contained in her reply, he did not show it. She slid into the seat opposite him, and he caught the faintest whiff of perfume, of the intoxicating scent of flowers that only bloom when the moon is full. And then the scent dissipated, and he found himself looking at her.

"Your hair… it's grown."

"Yes." A pause. "I haven't cut it since we… since the Titans…"

"It suits you."

"Thank you."

He looked up into her dark eyes and saw curiosity. A split second later, she masked them, but by then he'd already seen the question in her gaze.

"You can ask," he said gently.

She shot him an apologetic look.

"What happened? You're… your skin… it's… normal."

"They found a cure, a few years back. Metropolis. I was living there by then, so… it was easy."

He watched as she took in the enormity of what he was saying. Her eyes widened by a fraction, but for her, it was enough to show that the news had shocked her.

"So you're… you don't have your… powers anymore?"

"They're gone."

She frowned slightly.

"You look as pale as ever. Do you sleep well?"

It came out before he remembered that she hardly ever slept when they were younger. She just sort of hovered around and meditated.

"I rest enough."

"That's good. Oh hell, I'm sorry – do you want a drink?"

"It's okay, I don't drink coffee now…"

"You can have tea. I'm having a green tea soy latte."

She smiled ruefully, and for a second he wondered if she really was the same girl he'd grown up with, he'd fought alongside, and who had made nothing but snide remarks about him the whole time they'd lived in the Tower with the others.

"All right, I'll have what you're having."

They sat staring at each other until her drink came, and then he shifted his gaze and stared at the hot vapours that rose from her mug. By then, his own drink had become lukewarm. She raised the mug to her lips and sipped the tea gingerly. He peeled his eyes away from her mouth and cleared his throat awkwardly.

"So, uh… you still doing your chants and magic stuff?"

"'Magic stuff'?"

"You know what I mean."

"I'll always have to meditate, Beast – " She stopped, then corrected herself quickly, "Logan. It's what keeps the demons at bay."

"No one calls me Logan now," he said. (It was a lie.) "I'm still Beast Boy at heart, really."

"But you're not a boy anymore." She smiled again, and this time she did not bother concealing the sadness in her eyes.

He looked away and brushed an imaginary speck of dust from the tabletop. After all these years, he still found it impossible to look into her eyes for long.

"Things change," he said simply.

Somewhere near the front of the café, a table of young students burst into raucous laughter. And suddenly he felt suffocated, by the four walls of the café, by the all too small table they were at, by the whole setting. He needed to get out. He wanted out.

She raised the mug to her lips and drained the last drops of tea, then wiped her lips with the thin paper serviette lying next to her mug.

"I'm done. We could… talk a short walk if you want."

It was as if she'd read his mind.

He'd forgotten she could do that.

Out in the street, she pulled her navy coat closer around her, and wrapped her arms protectively in front of her chest.

They stood on the sidewalk for a while, unsure of where to go.

"The park?" he suggested.

She gave a slight nod, and they turned to walk in the direction of greenery.

"So," she began lightly, "I hear you're married."

He almost stopped walking. It took all of his willpower to keep one foot moving in front of the other.

"Yeah. Yes. I am. How… how did you find out? Did Cy tell you?"

"Mmm," she evaded his question with one of her own, "what's she like?"

"She?"

"Your _wife_."

"Oh, Theresa? She's… she's great. She's got a kind heart, and a wonderful smile."

"Does she know about..."

"The Titans?" he jumped in. "No. Bless her, she doesn't know a thing about… my past."

She cast a glance in his direction, and for a moment he cursed himself for not having let her finish her sentence. Perhaps she hadn't meant to ask about his past, but about something else…

"And your…" there was a moments hesitation, "children?"

He wondered, not without a slight amount of irritation, where she'd gotten her information.

"They're good. Take after their mother, mostly. They have her fair hair."

"That's wonderful."

They'd reached the park, and the sun was beginning to set. The trees around them cast thin, dying shadows on the gravel paths. He half expected her to pick a bench to sit on, but she kept on walking, and so did he, jamming his fists into his pockets.

"So," he ventured after a bout of silence, "are you seeing anyone?"

She made a sound that sounded like a sigh. "Yes. Max. He's a journalist."

"I see. That's nice."

"He's usually overseas working on a beat, so, it works out. I get my space."

"You always needed your space."

If she took offence at his remark, she did not show it.

"I'm having a baby."

It clicked then, for him, and he wondered why he hadn't realized it sooner – the soft roundness of her features, the tentative way in which she held herself, the passing remark about coffee, her slightly oversized blue coat. Or maybe he had noticed all these, but had not wanted to believe it.

"I… That's… Congratulations."

She stopped walking, then, and turned to face him.

"We've really come a long way, haven't we?"

He did not know if she meant her and Max, or about the two of them, her and him.

"Raven, I…"

They were so close. He could have reached out then, brushed aside the stray tendril of hair and tucked it behind her delicate ear. She could have brought a slender hand to his mouth and smoothed away the frown lines that were beginning to show. He could have pressed his lips to hers, like how he'd always dreamt of doing a long, long time ago, and she, resisting at first, would slowly relent and allow the kiss to deepen.

But she had Max to think about. And he, Theresa and the kids.

No, things weren't that simple anymore.

They were no longer teenagers, no longer Titans.

"I enjoyed the tea," she finished his sentence for him.

"And the walk," he added.

"And the walk, yes."

"If you like, we could meet sometime again. Just to catch up, you know. Have tea again."

Silence.

The sun sank further down in the horizon, and a soft breeze scattered the fallen leaves around their feet.

She smiled at him again, suddenly, painfully.

"I'd like that, Beast Boy. I would."


End file.
